Barely Breathing
by n1c0le
Summary: Casey's suddenly acting strange and Derek wants to know why. Rating upped for themes.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **_New fic by me that I hope you all enjoy! I may up the rating in later chapters so make sure you don't have the "filter out M-rated stories" function on! Please review!_

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Casey shifted in her seat uncomfortably as her blue eyes were trained on the sheet of paper she was holding in front of her. She scanned the note, reading it over and over again until Derek was sure that she had whatever it was memorized.

He figured it was something for school at first, but the look on her face—that pale, ghostly look that had washed over her pretty features—clued him in on that it had nothing to do with homework. Finally she looked up from the paper, her fingers clutching it so hard that her knuckles had turned as white as her face. Derek hoped to catch her eye, but Casey's dilated pupils were glazed over as she stared at a blank spot on the wall next to him, her mind in another place entirely.

Not wanting to seem like he cared, Derek stopped the inquiry from rolling off of his tongue. He pursed his lips together and went back to the game of Scrabble that he was currently in the middle of.

"Casey, it's your turn," Lizzie said without looking up at her older sister. If she had, she would have known that something was wrong.

"I, uh," Casey stood up awkwardly, nearly tripping from how wobbly her legs had gotten, "I gotta go finish some homework," she told them. Her voice was off, as if she was covering some emotion with an un-Casey-like "everything's cool" tone. She quickly turned on her heel and advanced the staircase like she was being timed.

"It's Friday night," Edwin pointed out, shaking his head in dismay at his eldest stepsister. Everyone in the house—hell, everyone in the _town district_ knew that Casey was a bit obsessive about her grades and her schoolwork. A Teacher's Pet. A Grade-Grubber. But doing homework on the Friday night of a long-weekend? That was a little _too_ much, even for Casey MacDonald.

Derek was about to make some snide comment about this, but he looked up to see that Casey had already bolted up the carpeted stairs, out of sight.

Having a girl his age living in the same house as him was strange for Derek. At first, he had been a bit ticked off that he had to share his space with random people—his dad's _random_ new wife and her two _random_ daughters—but the past few months hadn't been as bad as he had imagined. With Casey in his life practically every moment of the day, things were different, yes; but not all bad.

She was a spitfire. A fiery little thing who wasn't about to let Derek get whatever he want, whenever he wanted it. She defied sacred Venturi Rules such as sitting on "Derek's Recliner" (_she could sit wherever she felt like sitting!)_ and always allowing Derek to watch what he wanted on TV (_figure skating is way more skilful than hockey anyway!)_. She fought tooth-and-nail with him at any chance she had to prove that he was NOT the ruler of the house anymore. And she would NOT back down from a fight.

Although Derek seemed so exasperated to have Casey standing up to him and arguing with him over every little damn thing, the truth was that Derek was quite thrilled about it. Finally, someone who he could butt heads with. Someone who wouldn't back down and made him fight to get his way. An exciting challenge to get his blood flowing and his adrenaline going.

He would never admit it, but he was glad that the MacDonalds had moved in. Including Casey.

"I guess we'll skip Casey then," Edwin shrugged, breaking Derek out of his thoughts. Scratching his messy dark hair, he looked over at Lizzie. "Lizzie, you're up."

Derek didn't know much about Lizzie, the younger stepsister. She seemed more quiet, but at times, had been proven to show that she was every bit as defiant as her older sister. She stood up for what she thought was right, even if that meant going up to Derek and persuading him to see things in a different way—a more _Casey_ way. And usually, to Derek's disgruntlement, she was right.

The one thing for Derek that really stood out about Lizzie was the way she was with Edwin.

Edwin, Derek's younger brother who was often forced way out of the lime-light as the middle child by his older brother and his little sister. He had been more reserved and painfully anti-social before the MacDonalds arrived. Derek could remember not seeing him for hours as he locked himself up in his bedroom, playing computer games or who-knows-what. Star Wars figurines or something like that. His door was always shut; stating clearly that he did not want any visitors.

Nowadays, Edwin always seemed to be around—out in the backyard playing soccer, playing board games in the family room, talking, laughing, and never in his bedroom. Always with friends. Always with Lizzie.

And his bedroom door was always wide open.

George Venturi, Derek's scatterbrained father, had changed a lot too since the MacDonald Family had moved in. Sure, he was still as absentminded as always, forgetting to pick his kids up and leaving dairy products out of the fridge until the kitchen began to smell kinda funky. But he didn't work as much. He made it home for dinner practically every night. Always with a smile on his face for his new wife and their family.

The only one that hadn't seemed to change much was Marti—the family member Derek was most partial towards. At only six, the world was still this fun adventure for her. Everything interested her. She always wanted to know "why" and "how." She had imaginary friends and pretended that she was a cat most of the time. Her childish innocence charmed Derek The Charmer. There would always be a special place in his heart for his little sister, this he knew.

Marti had adjusted to the Big Move-In with ease, unlike the rest of the family. For months, Derek had thought that his life was taking a downward plunge into a hellish hole, now that he had three girls telling him and his family how to live. But recently—just recently—he was beginning to see that maybe it wasn't so bad.

"Casey?" Nora asked as she walked into the family room. Lizzie and Edwin both looked up at her expectantly, and Derek scrubbed his face in his hands, coming out of his reverie.

Nora's cobalt-blue eyes, which both of her daughters had inherited, scanned the room. "Where's Casey?"

"Upstairs," Derek answered, noting that Nora wasn't just asking casually for her daughter. Something was up. "Why?" he asked nosily, trying to play it off as if he didn't really care that much.

But his question was lost to Nora, who was already bounding up the stairs for her eldest.

Lizzie, realizing that something was going on, ran up after her mother. Derek was about to run up to eavesdrop when his father walked into the family room from the kitchen.

"Derek," he said in a warning tone, knowing exactly where his eldest son was heading.

"I was just going to grab a CD," Derek shrugged a lie, heading back down the two steps he had gotten up before being caught.

"This is a MacDonald Family moment only," George said wisely, sitting down on the couch where Edwin has scooted up to lounge on while he waited for Lizzie.

"Huh?" Edwin asked, scrunching up his face. "What is that supposed to mean? I thought we were, like, supposed to be one big family now." Edwin's large brown eyes studied his father from the side.

"Yeah, that's true," George said slowly, knowing that Edwin was right. "But, uh… this is something that Nora and the girls need to talk about together."

Now Derek was intrigued. This had to be something juicy. "What is it?"

"It's not our business," George held up his hands so Derek wouldn't bother interrogating him. He wasn't going to give out any information and that was final.

"I have to take a leak," Derek blurted quickly, moving back over to the banister.

"Derek," George warned, giving him the sharp Parental Eyebrow Arch.

"What, do you want me to pee in my pants?" Derek shot back.

Sighing, George gave up, waving his son off. Derek jogged up the stairs and headed right past the bathroom. Casey's bedroom door wasn't open, to his discouragement, but it was left slightly ajar. He pressed his ear against the door experimentally.

Muffled voices.

"….him married…"

"…not only…stepbrothers…"

"…not your…love him…"

"…two of you…weekend?"

Seeing that he was getting nowhere, Derek moved away from the door. And just in time too—the door swung open. A deadpanned Lizzie and a slightly flustered-looking Nora walked out. Neither seemed to notice Derek as they walked by him.

He turned to look through the now-opened door. Casey was sitting there on her bed, looking eerily blank. Numb. Her eyes looked far away and her hands were clutched tightly together in her lap. Slowly she began to sway back and forth, her mouth turning downward as she visibly became upset.

"Case?" Derek asked, stepping in closer, slightly concerned.

Casey immediately snapped out of it, and her eyes turned cold. "What?" she asked in annoyance.

Derek knew when to back off. Slowly he stepped back again as Casey shot daggers out of her eyes. "Nothing," he said slowly.

"Then get out," Casey looked un-amused. She got up, walked across the room, and slammed the door shut in Derek's face.

Not very unlike Casey, who pissed off easily. Giving up, he stalked over towards his bedroom.

"Kids, dinner!" Nora shouted just as he sat down at his computer to see who was online. He wanted to ask Sam over for dinner, but realized it was a bit late to do that. Turning his monitor back off, he stood up, stretching the kinks out of his back so graciously given to him from hockey practice earlier that day.

"I'm not hungry!" he heard Casey yell as he walked out of his bedroom.

"Casey, now!" Nora shouted back in agitation.

Casey let out an annoyed heavy sigh and charged out of her bedroom, practically bombing into Derek. He instinctively grabbed her to steady her, catching her just before she tumbled onto the hardwood floor.

Both of them looked down at his hands wrapped securely around her waist. This strange feeling washed over Derek, causing him to pause. But that moment didn't last because as soon as Casey got upright, she shoved his hands off of her, eyes blazing.

"Don't. Touch. Me," she growled before pushing past him.

Derek's tawny eyes narrowed as he watched his stepsister's retreating back. Sure, she was a feisty girl. But she was never this… _bitchy_.

What the _hell_ was up with Casey MacDonald?


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: **_Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciate them! Please let me know what you think of this chapter and enjoy!_

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As Derek toyed with his fork, twirling it through the mashed potatoes absently as he watched his stepsister across the table, he wished that he was able to read people better. His best friend Sam had a gift for that. He could look at a person and get a feel for what was bothering them somehow. Derek, well, he was just clueless.

He knew something was bothering Casey. She sat quietly—a little _too_ quietly—as the joined MacDonald-Venturi Family ate their last meal of the day. Usually she shared what had happened in school and rubbed in how well she was doing and how well Derek was NOT doing. Or tell the family about something witty one of her teacher's had said. Or talk about her plans to shop with Emily at the mall on Saturday. But during this particular dinner, Casey was silent.

She seemed very distant. All she did was move her dinner around the plate with her fork to make it look like she was eating. Derek doubted very much that the fork had even touched her lips once that night.

Nora and George acted like they didn't notice the weird way Casey was acting. Unless they really didn't notice. Derek wouldn't put it past them. Nora was just as flaky and scatterbrained as his father was. It was a quality—or vice, perhaps—that they both shared.

Edwin spoke the most at dinner that night. Even more than _Marti_—who always felt the need to account for every second of her school day. Derek noticed that Lizzie was a bit quieter than her usual quiet self. She nodded once in awhile towards Edwin but basically remained pretty neutral.

"Hey, how about a family game of soccer tonight?" George suddenly interrupted Edwin's recount of some boring fact his loser friend Steve had told him about mice.

"George, it's already dark out," Nora reminded him, smoothing her napkin out on her lap for the hundredth time.

"So? There are street lights," George waved her off. "Come on, who's in?" He looked around the table excitedly, like he had thought of the best idea in the world. "Lizzie?" he asked immediately, knowing that she was big into soccer.

"Sure," Lizzie shrugged unenthusiastically.

George's grin wavered slightly at her lack of enthusiasm, but he regained the goofy grin when Marti yelped an excited, "Yay!"

"Can I throw the ball into the hoop?" Marti asked with a toothy grin.

Then George's smile faltered again. Nora let out a laugh and Derek gave his little sister an affectionate hair-ruffle.

"That's basketball, Smarti," he reminded her with a wink.

Marti simply beamed up a smile at her big brother in response. "Smerek are you gonna play too?"

"Sure," Derek shrugged. It wasn't like he had anything else to do. His date for the evening had actually _cancelled_ on him. Something about her grandmother in the hospital. A likely story.

"I'm in," Edwin said with a grin. He looked over at his older stepsister. "Casey?"

Derek's eyes returned to the quiet brunette sitting in front of him. He had almost forgotten she was there, she was so silent. Blinking several times, Derek watched her try to register what Edwin had asked her. Finally she said, "Huh?"

"Soccer match tonight," Edwin explained. "Let's say… girls versus boys?" he grinned evilly, knowing that with his sporty older brother he would have the upper hand.

"I'm gonna pass," Casey said carefully. She wasn't sporty to begin with. Plus, she just wasn't feeling up to it. Derek knew this, even if he didn't know exactly what was up with her.

"Come on Casey," Lizzie coaxed gently. "It'll be fun."

"No," Casey snapped, and Derek's eyes widened. Casey never snapped at Lizzie. Ever.

But Lizzie didn't seem very hurt by it. In fact, she seemed understanding.

And nobody commented on it. Derek was wondering if he was the only one noticing that Casey wasn't really Casey anymore…

After dinner, Derek found himself standing in Lizzie's doorway as she pulled on her sneakers to play outside. He cleared his throat awkwardly to gain her attention, and Lizzie looked up at him curiously.

"Derek?" her eyebrows furrowed. She hadn't remembered her older stepbrother ever coming into her room. _Ever_.

"Uh, I was just wondering if you noticed that Casey's been acting a bit weird today," he said as casually as possible, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he looked around the room. Just months ago, this room had been a guestroom. Derek remembered that whenever his dad's sister or mother had come over, they would always stay in this empty room. It used to have only a twin-sized bed and a small nightstand next to it with a reading lamp and a small alarm clock that never showed the correct time. Now, it was filled with sports posters and old photographs of the MacDonald family through the years. The essence of Lizzie. It seemed brighter and more welcoming than Derek had ever remembered it to be.

"Why do you care?" Lizzie couldn't help but cock her head to the side at Derek, wondering just why he would give a damn if Casey was acting herself or not. She was surprised, in fact, that he had even noticed. Usually it was all about him.

Derek scratched his forehead in annoyance. Leave it to Lizzie to make Derek feel low. She somehow managed to do that every time she talked to him. Like that time she came to him to confront him about the way he was picking on Casey during that Klutzilla time not long ago. She had this way of making him feel guilty—because "Casey was his sister now" and he shouldn't just go "throwing her to the wolves."

He hated when Lizzie got to him like that about Casey. It reminded him of the way his mom had been about teasing Edwin.

"Leave her alone," Lizzie said simply when she didn't get a response from Derek.

"What was the letter about?" Derek prodded, and Lizzie stilled at that.

Looking up at Derek with eyes that didn't tell him anything, Lizzie said slowly, "That was from my dad. He was inviting me and Casey to his wedding next weekend, that's all." She went back to tying her shoes, making it clear that this conversation was over. Which, of course, Derek would not have.

"So your dad is getting remarried," Derek shrugged. "It happens." He still didn't see what the big deal was about. His dad had gotten remarried. Nora had gotten remarried. He would think that Casey wouldn't seem that phased by it—especially since she never talked about her dad.

Lizzie just continued, moving on to tie her other sneaker. She didn't even look up at him.

"Are you and Casey going to go?" Derek pushed. He didn't even know where Mr. MacDonald lived.

"It doesn't seem like we have a choice," Lizzie said, her voice strangely soft now. She kept her eyes trained on her shoelaces.

"What… do you and Casey have something against him?" Derek continued, crossing his arms over his chest accusingly.

Lizzie stood up, finally looking up at Derek. Her innocent face looked somehow damaged. Her lips turned down in a frown that made her seem much more mature—like she was a lot older than just ten years old. The aged look on her face made Derek stop completely.

"Something like that," Lizzie said softly and manoeuvred around Derek to exit her room.

Derek didn't chase after her to demand any more details. Because even someone like the Great Derek, who was always wrapped up in himself and his enormous ego, could tell when it was time to back off.

Some things were just off-limit with people. And Derek could tell that with the MacDonald Family, this was one of those things.

"Derek, you coming!" George yelled up to his son from the bottom of the stairwell as the kids all bundled up for their soccer match.

"Yeah, sure," Derek called back down, turning into his own bedroom down the hall in order to get his Chucks.

He couldn't help but notice that Casey's door was tightly shut and there was a slow song leaking through the thin wall between his and her bedroom. Pulling on his sneakers, he winced as he tried to focus on the lyrics of the sad melody.

_What could I say to you, oh, _

_When makin' the waves was left unconscious..._

_I didn't mean to tell you why, oh whyyy  
But you harboured all defences  
And you're makin' it hard to bring that hope back, for you and I _

All that I see is that we're livin' life  
Did you fail when you found that you paid the price,  
Hope it wasn't lost in an honest truce  
The past doesn't break all that we been through  
Every little thing that you did was right  
Who knows what you did on the day you cried endlessly

_Ooo you cried endlessly _

Take a message from my love,

_Take a message from my love, _

_Take a message _

Take a message from my love,

_Take a message from my love,_

_Take a message…_

Derek frowned to himself. This wasn't the usual music he heard pounding through the wall—upbeat Britney Spears or Hilary Duff or some other hot blonde pop princess with pointless lyrics but a catchy refrain. Chewing the inside of his cheek, he walked over to the room beside his, knocking three times.

"Casey?" he asked, calling over the melancholic music.

The volume turned down a few notches, and Casey opened the door with an aggravated expression on her face.

"What?" she demanded, obviously not too pleased about having been interrupted with whatever it was that she was doing.

The words flew out of his mouth before he had a chance to stop them.

"Are you okay?"

Blue eyes turned icy as froze him with just a glare. "Like you care," she practically spat.

Derek was a little hurt by this, but he knew that she had a point. He had never faked caring about her feelings before—why the sudden 180? Quickly getting back into his Derek-esque uncaring pose, arms crossed and small smirk playing at his lips, he shrugged. "Just wondering why you don't want to watch me kick everyone's butt out there," he nodded over towards her window, where he could hear Marti shouting excitedly as the soccer game was about to begin.

Casey looked unmoved. "I don't do sports. You know that." She began to shut the door in his face again when his left hand sprang out and stopped the door from closing.

"What!" Casey stated, her teeth setting with annoyance. She quite clearly wanted him to let go of the door.

"I know about your dad," he said simply, his dark eyes quickly searching her face for her reaction.

Casey paused, immediately looking away from him.

"I know he's getting remarried," Derek continued.

That's when Casey looked back up at him. Her eyes were so dark, so grey, so completely hateful that Derek actually felt a chill move up his spine.

"You don't know anything," Casey said slowly, scathingly. Her face twisting with anger and some other emotion Derek couldn't quite place.

And she slammed the door in the stunned teen's face.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: **_Thanks for the reviews, please keep them coming so I know what you think! I really value hearing what my readers think about each chapter! Hope you enjoy!_

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Tossing and turning in his bed, Derek sighed angrily. He shouldn't have had that damn Pepsi an hour ago. Stupid caffeine had him wired, and he was supposed to drag himself out of bed early the next morning to catch a movie with Sam. Preferably before Casey found out the two of them were going and wanted to tag along to drool over Sam or something.

Speaking of Casey, Derek hadn't seen her for the rest of the night. She had locked herself in her bedroom. She didn't even come out for dessert—Nora's famous double-fudge brownies. She claimed that she had a headache or something like that. An obvious lie that the rest of the family simply accepted.

Groaning, Derek pushed his blankets off of him and got up, padding his way over to his computer desk. He flicked on the computer screen and let it boot up while he tiredly scratched his fingers through his messy hair. He would go online and look up sports scores or chat with a friend or something. Anything so he could stop dwelling on Casey and her stupid drama. She was probably just PMS or something.

_Women_.

He drummed his fingers along the side of his desk as he signed onto his instant messenger. Just as he was about to message one of his hockey buddies, he heard a low, muffled sound coming from the room beside him. He ignored it at first, beginning to type "Hey" to Jeff, but the noise sounded again—louder this time.

Curious, Derek got up and opened his bedroom door just a crack, peering out into the darkened hallway. Silence. The whole family seemed to be asleep. So what was—

"_No_!" came a strangled cry, this time loud and clear. And it was coming from Casey's bedroom.

Quickly, Derek rushed out of his bedroom and flung Casey's door open. He couldn't find the lightswitch quickly enough in the dark, but was able to make out Casey's figure in the dark, tossing, alone, in her bed. Thrashing. Weeping.

"_Please_!" she choked, clawing at her pillow. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, but her eyes were closed. She was still asleep.

"Case?" Derek asked, an odd feeling of worry coming over him. He walked up to Casey and grabbed her wrists as they flung into the air, and Casey let out a muffled cry, her eyes finally snapping open. He looked over every centimetre of the girl's face in concern.

Casey sniffled, quickly sitting up, looking around wildly as she tried to get her bearings straight. She wrenched her wrists away from Derek's grasp and wiped her face.

"What… what are you doing here?" she asked him. His eyebrows furrowed at the way she asked it so casually, like she was asking him what the weather was like or something normal like that.

"You were having a nightmare," he told her, still concerned. He had never heard of her having a nightmare before. In fact, he thought the only ones who still had nightmares anymore was little Marti from time to time, during which she would wake up in tears and run to Derek's room and he would let her stay with him for the rest of the night, cuddling with her, protecting her from the monsters and the boogeyman.

Casey didn't respond. She just pushed her hair back and straightened herself out. She was trying to look calm. But Derek could see that she was shaking.

"Do you…uh…want to talk about it?" Derek asked, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. Having emotional conversations wasn't exactly his strong point…but Casey looked like she needed to talk. Plus, he was kind of curious as to what kind of a dream would freak someone like Casey out so much.

"No," Casey said quickly, hugging herself, bringing her knees up to her chest. It made her look like a little kid. Innocent and childish. Just like Marti.

"Are you sure? Because I—"

"I said no," Casey snapped, cutting Derek off.

Derek sighed in frustration, moving back over to the doorway. He had tried to be nice, but clearly Casey just wasn't having it. "Fine." With that, Derek grabbed the doorknob and left the room. As he was closing the door, he heard Casey suddenly whimper, "Derek?"

Stilling his motions, Derek poked his head into the room. He could only see Casey's silhouette in the darkness.

"Could you…leave the door open a bit?" she asked, her voice suddenly softer, more vulnerable.

"Yeah," Derek said quietly.

He couldn't get that uncharacteristically defenceless, broken tone of Casey's voice out of his head all night.

"_SMEREK_!"

Derek opened one eye to see his little sister's face just millimetres away from his own. She was grinning her toothy grin at him, already wearing a tiara and sparkles glittering her face.

"Smarti, it's too early," Derek groaned, shutting his eye again to hide from the sunlight streaming in through his window.

"Sammy's on the telephone!" Marti exclaimed, bouncing on him again, waving the phone in the air.

Derek sighed, giving in and opening his eyes. He was instantly blinded by the light, and blinked several times as he took the phone from wiggly little Marti.

"Hello?" he asked, his voice still hoarse and thick with sleep.

"We gonna go to the movies?" came Sam's very-awake and rather chipper voice.

Derek grunted, shifting in his bed so Marti could crawl into the blankets with him. "Why so early, man?"

"Dude, it's like noon," Sam responded.

Derek's eyes moved over to his bed stand, where his alarm clock confirmed his best-friend's words. "Alright, alright," he yawned, sitting up in his bed and scratching his chest tiredly. "You wanna meet there?"

"Nah, it's cool, I'll meet you at your place," Sam offered.

"Fine," Derek said, looking over at Marti, who was humming some nursery rhyme to herself while she played with a toy wand she was holding. "Just give me time to shower."

"Please do," Sam joked and Derek rolled his eyes at his best-friend even though he couldn't see.

"Yeah, yeah. See ya later," Derek said and hung up. Marti peered up at him with her big blue eyes.

"You missed breakfast," she said matter-of-factly. "Nora made blueberry pancakes."

"Did you save me any?" Derek gave his sister a small smile. She was definitely his favourite family member and always had been. For some reason, he just had always had this special place in his heart for his little Smarti.

"No," Marti shook her head honestly.

Derek chuckled. "Oh you didn't, did ya?" He leaned over and began tickling her until she was giggling uncontrollably.

He grabbed his shower stuff after depositing Marti into her room and took a quick shower. As he passed by his Drama Queen stepsister's bedroom, which was closed up to the world, not to his surprise, he heard a whiny female singer blasting through Casey's stereo.

… _I get a little warm in my heart  
When I think of winter  
I put my hand in my father's glove  
I run off where the drifts get deeper  
Sleeping Beauty trips me with a frown.  
I hear a voice  
"You must learn to stand up for yourself  
'Cause I can't always be around,"  
He says,  
When you gonna make up your mind?  
When you gonna love you as much as I do?  
When you gonna make up your mind?  
'Cause things are gonna change so fast  
All the white horses are still in bed  
I tell you that I'll always want you near  
You say that things change my dear. _

Boys get discovered as winter melts;  
Flowers competing for the sun.  
Years go by and I'm here still waiting,

_Withering where some snowman was  
Mirror mirror where's the crystal palace?  
But I only can see myself  
Skating around the truth who I am  
But I know, Dad, the ice is getting thin _

When you gonna make up your mind?  
When you gonna love you as much as I do?  
When you gonna make up your mind?  
'Cause things are gonna change so fast  
All the white horses are still in bed  
I tell you that I'll always want you near  
You say that things change my dear.

Hair is grey and the fires are burning  
So many dreams on the shelf  
You say I wanted you to be proud of me  
I always wanted that myself…

He says,  
When you gonna make up your mind?  
When you gonna love you as much as I do?  
When you gonna make up your mind?  
'Cause things are gonna change so fast  
All the white horses have gone ahead  
I tell you that I'll always want you near  
You say that things change  
My dear…

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**One Other Author's Note:** The song at the end of this chapter is sorta a vague hint as to where this is going ;-)


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: **_Thanks for the revies, please keep 'em coming! Oh, and a lot of you asked about the song at the end of the last chapter (chapter 3)... it's okay if you didn't get it, it's just something vague that you'll understand more as the story progresses. The song was by Tori Amos and it's called 'Winter'... really good song, always makes me tear up a little... go download it if ya can! And I got some complaints about it being too short (I know, I know) so this chapter I made much longer :-) Hope you enjoy, please let me know! Okay, one last thing... I'm going to up the rating of this story starting with the next chapter, because of themes. Just to warn ya! Alrighty, on with the story!_

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As the week progressed, Casey never seemed to return to her usual self. Derek tried several times to incense her by attempting unsuccessfully to start fights with her; their usual banter. But Casey didn't go along with him as usual. In fact, she seemed to be ignoring him. Now, Derek could handle Casey hating him—loathing him because he would try to be so goddamn irritating to her, just for kicks—but being ignored? That was something completely new to Derek. And he didn't like it one bit.

Winter was approaching fast, so George tried to get the whole family to participate in some unorganized sporting event outside after dinner every night that week. At first Derek went along with it, but all of the family bonding time was getting too much for him. By Thursday night, he pretended to be studying for a nonexistent geography exam instead.

Of course, he was playing a computer game instead.

He was on his way to beating his high score on some random game he had discovered online when he heard a lot of commotion downstairs.

"Derek!" came his father's voice soon after, not to Derek's surprise.

Sighing heavily, he responded. "What?"

"Can you come down here?" George yelled back, his tone sounding a bit frazzled even for him.

Derek reluctantly paused his game and jogged down the stairs to see what was going on. His dad had his car keys in his hand, and Nora was talking rapidly on the telephone. Casey, Marti, and Edwin were all crowded around the couch, surrounding Lizzie, whose face was scrunched up in pain.

"What happened?"

"Lizzie landed hard on her leg," Edwin explained to his older brother matter-of-factly. "It looks like she broke her ankle."

Sure enough, Casey had rolled the leg of Lizzie's pants up and it was easy to see that her ankle was definitely bent in a way that it should _not_ be bent. Derek had seen it many times before, being a hockey player and all. He had been there more times than he could remember, too.

"Ooh, Liz, looks like you got a nice break there," Derek said, secretly pitying the poor girl. Having anything broken was not exactly a walk in the park. Her ankle was already beginning to swell.

"Okay, the hospital knows we're on our way," Nora said as she turned off the phone. "Let's get Lizzie into the van."

George picked Lizzie up easily and Edwin ran to open the door for them. As the family herded out the door, Nora stopped Casey and Derek.

"Would you two mind staying here with Marti and Edwin?"

"I'm coming to the hospital!" Edwin shouted from the doorway.

Nora sighed. "Fine. But I don't know how long we'll be, so would you two mind staying with Marti?"

"Sure," Derek shrugged. He was really up to a hospital trip anyway.

"Of course," Casey nodded seriously, taking on her Goody Two Shoes role yet again. Derek had to admit, he liked seeing the familiar Casey spark glimmering through her sudden doom and gloom faze she had been currently going through. Randomly and boringly.

"Dr. Marti needs to come with Lizzie!" Marti cried out indignantly, already getting out her fake medical kit.

"Nah, come on Smarti," Derek scooped the young girl up. "Let's go make some ice cream sundaes."

"_Yay_!" Marti exclaimed, immediately throwing down her old-fashioned pretend nurse hat.

"We'll call you if we're going to be really late," Nora said as she rushed out the door.

"Alright," Casey said in understanding. She watched as Nora, George, Lizzie, and Edwin sped off in the van towards the hospital. Closing the door, she turned and went into the kitchen.

"Hey Case, you want a sundae?" Derek asked as he scooped some vanilla ice cream into a bowl. Marti was dancing around the kitchen excitedly.

Casey arched an eyebrow at Derek's sudden generosity. _Questionable_. "No thanks," she told him, sitting down at the table anyway.

"Is Lizzie gonna need crunches?" Marti stopped her twirling and looked over at her brother and stepsister inquisitively.

"You mean 'crutches'?" Casey asked, hiding a smile. Then she frowned, thinking about her poor younger sister and all the pain she was in. "I don't know. Probably."

"I want crunches," Marti said, climbing onto a chair to wait for her sundae.

"No you don't, Smarti," Derek shook his head. "They're not very fun." He placed a large bowl of ice cream, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and a cherry in front of the little girl, whose eyes immediately got wide.

"I need a spoon, Smerek!" she exclaimed, poking her finger into the mound of whipped cream and licking it up happily.

Derek got her a spoon and finished making himself a sundae, too. He sat down at the table with the girls.

Not a fan of silence, he began talking. "So, what time are you leaving for the wedding tomorrow?" he asked Casey nonchalantly. "Where is it, anyway?"

Casey's eyes immediately darkened and her whole demeanour changed in an instant. She slumped a little in her chair. "Uh, I don't know," she said, looking like she was trying to keep cool about it. Like she didn't care. But it was so obvious to Derek that she was not happy at all about going to this wedding. "In the morning I guess. It's up near Ottawa."

"Ah," Derek said. "Is Vicky going?" his eyes twinkled teasingly.

Casey's eyes narrowed. "No, that's my mother's side of the family, genius," she scoffed. He was just trying to get a rise out of her, she knew. "Plus, if Lizzie's in too much pain, I doubt will even be going," she said, looking away.

"_Won' your dad wan you dere at leas_?" Derek asked, his mouth full of ice cream.

Her nostrils flaring, Casey immediately stood up. "You're such a disgusting pig, Derek!" she exclaimed. "Why don't you just shut up and mind your own damn business!" With that, she stormed out of the room.

Marti looked over at her slightly stunned older brother. "Casey said the D word!" she whispered, her hand clasped over her mouth like a huge crime had been committed.

Derek only nodded at his sister absently, his eyes still on the kitchen doorway where Casey had fled. _What the hell was that_? was all he could think.

_And why do I care?_

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The rest of the family got home pretty late. Marti was in bed, Derek was downstairs watching TV in his favourite recliner, and Casey was upstairs in her room. Lizzie came back with a large cast on her foot and crutches.

Casey came downstairs when she heard them come in, and quickly hugged her sister tightly. "Are you okay?" she asked sympathetically. "Does it hurt?"

"No, they gave me pain medication," Lizzie smiled druggily and the family chuckled.

"The doctor said Lizzie broke it in three places," Edwin explained to Derek and Casey, staring at Lizzie with a mix of awe and respect.

"It's late now," Nora interrupted them all. "Let's get to bed. Casey, we're leaving here at eight tomorrow morning, so be ready."

Casey stilled. "Wait, what about Lizzie's leg?"

"I'm afraid Lizzie's going to have to miss the wedding," Nora patted her youngest daughter's shoulder. "I want her to stay in bed for the weekend to rest up."

Derek looked over at Casey to study her reaction. Her face had drained completely of colour.

"Mom, I'm fine, really," Lizzie said quickly. "I want to go too."

"No," Nora eyed Lizzie sternly. "You are going to rest this weekend and that's final."

"Then maybe Casey should stay with me," Lizzie went on. "You know, she can help take care of me."

"Why that's just silly," Nora said. "You have all of us here. George and I will both be home all weekend."

"It's okay, Lizzie," Casey said quietly, giving her little sister a half-hearted smile. "You really should rest this weekend."

The sisters shared this look that made Derek a little uneasy. Something was going on. That was for sure.

"Eight A.M., Case," Nora reminded her before helping a sombre Lizzie up the stairs to her bedroom.

Casey stood where she was, staring down at the floor, completely lost in thought. Her hands were clasped together so tightly that Derek could see the white of each knuckle. Feeling Derek's eyes on her, she slowly looked up, her eyes sort of glazed and distant. Their eyes held for a brief moment before Casey retreated, heading upstairs to bed like the rest of the family.

Derek watched her go silently, his face exposed and naked for once, full of concern and confusion.

------------------------------------------------------------------

That night, Derek didn't mean to hear her. Honestly, he was just going to the bathroom during the middle of the night, since he had had a huge glass of water before bed. But as he walked by Casey's bedroom, he heard soft sobbing again.

"Case?" he asked tentatively, opening her door quietly, thinking she was still asleep and having another nightmare.

But her reading lamp was on and she was curled up in a ball in her bed like a little kid. Her face was hidden in her hands as she choked on her own sobs to keep their volume down. She didn't want anybody to hear her.

"Casey?" Derek asked, now letting himself inside the room, concerned.

"Go away!" he heard her, her voice muffled by the palms of her hands. But he didn't leave. In fact, he advanced her.

"Casey, what's wrong?" he asked carefully, trying to sound as un-Derek-like as possible, since she never responded well to him in general. He sat down next to her on her bed and leaned over to see if he could catch even a glimpse of her buried face. "Is it your dad? Are you upset about him getting married?"

That's when Casey finally looked up, and Derek's stomach turned at the sight of her red, splotchy face. Her eyes were swollen, nearly sealed shut, and her lips were trembling. He had never seen anybody look so completely shattered before. It scared him.

"My dad's dead," she said, her puffy eyes glaring straight into his, her mouth pressed into a thin line as she tried to control her emotions.

Derek simply gaped at her. "_What_? Wait…" he shook his head, utterly confused, "I thought he was getting married tomorrow."

Casey wiped away stray tears on her flushed cheeks and sat up a bit. "No," she spoke slowly. "That's—that's Lizzie's dad. He's not my dad. He's not my dad at all." She sniffled and childishly wiped her nose with the back of her sleeve. "I don't h-have a dad," her lower lip began to quiver again and Derek looked away, embarrassed at all of the open emotions. He just felt kind of awkward seeing Casey like this and not knowing what to do.

"What happened to your dad?" he asked softly, hoping she wouldn't take offence to the question or anything. But he was really interested in knowing, since this was all news to him.

"He left when I was a baby," Casey said carefully, unsure as the whether she really wanted to be sharing this with her stepbrother. "I, uh, never even knew him," she shrugged gently, as if she didn't care. When it was clear that she really did. "My mom got a call when I was three that he was dead. Drug overdose," her eyes filled up again and she looked away, not wanting Derek to see.

"Case…" Derek trailed off apologetically. He had no idea.

"I don't want your pity, Derek," Casey whispered, wiping her tears away.

Ignoring her, he went to awkwardly put his arm around her. And found that it wasn't really that awkward at all. She instinctively leaned in so her head rested against him, and she closed her eyes, breathing in his scent. She never noticed how good he smelled.

"What about Lizzie's dad?" Derek asked Casey, who was beginning to form around his side. All at once he could feel her tense up against him.

"Uh, my mom married him when she got pregnant with Lizzie," Casey shrugged nonchalantly, casually pulling away from Derek again.

Derek frowned as she lay back down on her bed, not touching him. He had like the warmth that spread through his body when she was against him; like he had just taken a large gulp of hot cocoa. "So he was kind of like a dad to you?"

"No!" Casey barked, causing Derek to jump back a little at her reaction.

She looked away from him then. "I gotta get to sleep," she stated flatly, making a show of fluffing her pillow and pulling her blankets up around her body. "I've got to be up early tomorrow."

Derek nodded, standing up. He wasn't ready to go, but apparently she was ready to have him leave. "Uh… have a good time," he said inelegantly, rubbing the back of his neck as he stood in the doorway again.

"Yeah," was all Casey responded with before she snapped out the lamp next to her and the room filled with darkness.

Derek closed the door quietly behind him. He couldn't really sleep the rest of the night. He knew that something was off, but just couldn't put his finger on what it was.

But he knew that it had to do with Casey and the wedding.

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"Casey, you don't have to go!" Derek heard Lizzie exclaim as he lay down in his bed staring up at the ceiling at 7AM. He hadn't gotten a wink of sleep, but had heard Casey get up at 6:30AM to shower and then walk back into her bedroom fifteen minutes later. Lizzie's door opened, too, and he heard her limp into Casey's bedroom with her crutches.

"Yes I do, kiddo," Derek heard Casey reply. "It'll be fine."

"But _Cayy-seeey_—" Lizzie's voice sounded almost pleading.

Derek sat up, his forehead wrinkled. Another scrambled up piece of the wacky puzzle that was Casey.

"I'll call you later, okay?" Casey said. Derek walked over and peered out his door to see Casey wrap her little sister in a big hug. Lizzie whispered something in Casey's ear that Derek strained but failed to hear. But he did see Casey mouth back, "I promise," and give her a strained smile.

She looked up, then, and her eyes met Derek's peeping ones. Their eyes held for a long five seconds before Casey looked away and walked down the stairs to leave.

Derek closed the door to his bedroom and fell into a restless slumber, his mind engraved with the picture of Casey's almost frightened-looking eyes as she stared into Derek's own eyes.

Her eyes had told him everything and nothing in those five seconds.

And still, Derek was stumped. But now, not only was he stumped, but he was worried. About Casey.

And he didn't even know why.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: **_Okay, I've upped the rating to 'M' only due to future themes. Thanks for all the feedback, please keep it up, it totally motivates me to write more! And also if you go on to youtube, you can watch **Season 2, Episode 12 - Middle Man-ic **of Life With Derek, the episode that has been un-aired in the USA thus far... it's SUCH a good episode! -grins- Okay, enjoy this chapter and please review!_

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Life was quieter at the MacDonald-Venturi Home without Casey. At dinnertime, the missing place setting at the table seemed to affect the extended family more than a little. George and Nora both tried to keep the conversation going to cover up the fact that Casey wasn't there. Marti even seemed to be a little bummed that her older stepsister wasn't there.

Derek was silent as he pushed the food around his plate. George and Nora pretended not to take note of that.

Lizzie engaged in a light conversation, but it was clear that Lizzie was not all there. Something was distracting her, and Edwin had tried to get it out of her earlier. She had simply told him that it was nothing; she was just missing her big sister.

Lizzie's blue eyes met Derek's once while passing the mashed potatoes and Lizzie quickly looked away, as if Derek could discover her inner secrets merely through eye contact. Derek knew that it was about Casey. He would have to confront her later.

Lizzie wouldn't be that hard to break.

"You wanna play Monopoly or Scrabble?" Edwin asked after dinner as the kids retired to the family room for their nightly ritual of board games.

"Actually, I think I'm gonna get to bed early," Lizzie said, looking apologetically at her stepbrothers and sister before retreating upstairs.

"What's up with her?" Edwin asked nobody in particular, his eyes lingering on the stairs where Lizzie had run.

"I don't know," Derek said absently, his mind racing. He glanced down at Edwin and Marti before jogging up the stairs, following his younger stepsister's footsteps.

He rapped on her door hurriedly, and he heard her respond with, "Yeah?"

Taking that as clearance, Derek opened the door and burst inside, finding Lizzie sitting on her bed, a closed book on her lap.

"I wanna know what's going on," Derek demanded of the ten year-old.

Lizzie's expression remained blank. "Nothing," she said, looking down at her book but still not opening it.

"Something is," Derek refuted, shutting the door behind him and walking towards the young girl. "And I want to know what it is."

"Why do you care?" Lizzie asked, her blue eyes finally looking up at him. They were filled with hurt and pain that no ten year-old girl should ever have to feel. It made Derek swallow roughly.

"Because I care about her," he responded honestly, his voice low with his admittance.

Lizzie studied him silently for a moment. "I promised I would never tell," she said then, in a tone barely above a whisper.

"Lizzie—" Derek began, coming closer still.

"No!" Lizzie suddenly yelled, causing Derek to stop in his tracks. From the look on her face, he could tell that she wasn't about to tell him anything. She looked more shut down than ever. And… scared. The poor thing looked terrified.

Yet Derek knew that the best thing for him to do was just to let her be. He was overstepping boundaries that Lizzie wasn't ready for him to cross.

It took all Derek had to turn away and open the door. As he stepped out of the room, he heard Lizzie brokenly say, "I hate him."

Derek turned to look at Lizzie. She was now clutching a stuffed animal to her chest and tears were welling in her eyes, threatening to fall. She looked innocent and fragile but mature and wise all at the same time.

He took a step back inside her room again, closing the door. "Who?" he pushed gently.

"My dad," she whispered, still not able to look up at her older stepbrother.

"Why?" Derek had to know, striding across the room to sit at the edge of her small twin bed. When she didn't respond, he gently pushed again. "Why, Lizzie? Why do you hate him?"

"I heard him sometimes," Lizzie said softly, her eyes far away as if remembering. "When we all lived together. In the middle of the night…" her lower lip began to tremble. "He…he would go into Casey's room. It was right across from mine so I saw him. I-I was afraid of the dark so I kept my door open." She hugged her teddy bear closer to her in comfort. "I could hear them. Casey would cry and beg and my dad would laugh and call her names."

Derek felt his heart pumping in his ears as his blood pressure rose quickly. "What…what about Nora?"

"She didn't hear," Lizzie shrugged dismally. "She never heard. She never knew."

"Casey…" Derek could barely choke her name out. He swallowed to moisten his suddenly dry throat.

"She told me that he hurt her," Lizzie explained softly. "But she made me promise I would never tell anyone." Her tears began moving down her cheeks in a steady stream now. "She's going to hate me now that I told."

But Derek could barely hear her now. He felt an anger rise up in him that he had never felt before. Not even when he was on the ice and somebody body-checked him face-first into the boards did he feel this rage.

"I don't want him to hurt her again," Lizzie broke down into sobs. But Derek couldn't comfort her. He was way past any of that. He was pissed off with a capital P.

"That son-of-a-bitch better not lay one hand on her," Derek growled as he stood up, his eyes flashing with anger. Lizzie looked up at him rather fearfully.

"Wh—what are you going to do?" Lizzie asked, wiping her eyes furiously so she could focus on Derek. She hadn't expected him to react this way. Of course, she hadn't really expected anything. But the crazed look in his eyes scared her. "D-Derek?"

But Derek was already out the door. Charging down the hall. He burst into Casey's bedroom and grabbed the card on her nightstand. The wedding invitation. With the address on it.

Like a whirlwind, he rushed downstairs and burst into the living room, grabbing his jacket and the keys to his father's car.

"Derek? Where are you going?" Nora asked from the couch where she was sharing a bowl of popcorn with George and Marti. So worry-free and content, cuddling with her new husband and little stepdaughter.

How could she _not_ have known? She _had_ to have known.

And Derek wanted to slap the blissful look off her face.

"Protecting Casey," he sneered as he pulled on his jacket. Looking straight at Nora, he continued in a scathing voice, "Something _you_ never did."

And with that, he was out the door.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: **_Thanks for the reviews, I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying it! Hope you like this chapter... it's Derek to the rescue! lol :-)_

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Derek's mind was on overload as he sped along the highway. He shut off his cell phone because his dad had tried calling him four times in a row. He didn't turn on the radio or put in a CD. His jaw was set and teeth were steadily grinding away as he gripped the steering wheel with both hands.

Two hours. It would take close to two hours to get to Casey's ex-stepfather's house. He didn't have a plan when he got there. What he really wanted to do was beat the shit out of the asshole and whisk Casey off somewhere—anywhere, as long as they were together and he knew she was safe.

No wonder why Casey had looked so upset about going to the wedding. It had nothing to do with the wedding at all. She didn't want to see Lizzie's dad.

Daniel MacDonald. Nora had not only taken his last name, but clearly had had Casey's changed as well. Now Casey carried the name of that piece of shit, against her will. It made Derek sick just thinking about it.

How anybody could hurt someone like Casey was beyond him. Sure, he had made fun of her and teased her at times (okay… _most_ of the time), but it was always playful. He never intentionally tried to really hurt her—he _couldn't_.

Casey was one of those rare finds that guys search forever looking for. She was the whole package: sweet, caring, smart, feisty, outspoken, and beautiful. The truth was that Derek had always known all of this—he knew that she was the perfect girl for him. His match. But he had to suppress any feelings he felt for her—because they were siblings now. _Step_siblings, but siblings nonetheless. He was supposed to think of her as his sister. Like Marti. And whenever he felt anything else for her, he would get angry. Which was why that he picked on her a lot, instigating their fights. And she would always fight back.

He loved every minute of it.

But to think about someone actually _intentionally_ hurting Casey—causing her pain, making her cry? It just made him plain sick inside.

"Goddamn speed limit," Derek growled as he stepped on the gas. It was late and there weren't many cars around. He would chance a ticket if it meant getting there any sooner—getting Casey away from that monster.

He knew that thinking about it when he couldn't do anything about it just yet only increased his anger. So he rolled down the windows to let the cool Canadian air calm his flushed face and turned on the radio to his favourite station.

He had to think about something else—anything else—besides Casey.

_Do not get me wrong I cannot wait for you to come home  
For now you're not here and I'm not there, it's like we're on our own  
To figure it out, consider how to find a place to stand  
Instead of walking away and instead of nowhere to land _

This is going to break me clean in two  
This is going to bring me close to you

She is everything I need that I never knew I wanted  
She is everything I want that I never knew I needed

_She is everything I need that I never knew I wanted  
She is everything I want that I never knew I needed _

It's all up in the air and we stand still to see what comes down  
I don't know where it is, I don't know when, but I want you around  
When it falls into place with you and I, we go from if to when  
Your side and mine are both behind it's indication

This is going to bring me clarity  
This'll take the heart right out of me

She is everything I need that I never knew I wanted  
She is everything I want that I never knew I needed

_She is everything I need that I never knew I wanted  
She is everything I want that I never knew I needed _

This is going to bring me to my knees  
I just want to hold you close to me

She is everything I need that I never knew I wanted  
She is everything I want that I never knew I needed

She is everything I needed  
She is everything

"Shit," Derek felt his eyes becoming blurry as the song ended. Everything was becoming so clear to him.

_Of course it takes a freakin' trauma like this for me to realise I'm falling for my stepsister_, he thought bitterly to himself.

Derek furiously rubbed at his eyes with one hand, glaring at the never-ending road in front of him. All he could see was the terrified look on Casey's face during her nightmares. Lizzie's scared blue eyes as she told him about her father. Nora's blatant stupidity.

_Please, God, let her be okay,_ he prayed desperately as he drove on, his adrenaline pumping through his veins.

And two hours seemed like two days.

Daniel MacDonald's house was in a nice neighbourhood where all houses looked the same—clean, white, and perfect—and families hid all of their dark secrets from the rest of the world. It took a frustrated Derek longer to find it than it should have because each house was a carbon-copy of the one before it, and it was hard to make out the address numbers in the dark.

Derek felt that swearing incessantly would help as he slowly rolled down the longest street he had ever seen. Once he finally found the house he was looking for, he didn't waste anytime, not even bothering to turn off the ignition of his car as he threw it into park, jumped out of the driver's seat, slammed the door, and ran up to the porch.

He wanted to break the door down, but settled with impatiently ringing the doorbell—eight times in a row. A light flickered on from inside and the door opened to reveal a tired looking, rather large man, about his own dad's age but at least a foot taller and a good 75 lbs heavier than George, struggling to tie his royal blue bathrobe. He had thinning brown hair, the same shade as Lizzie's, and the shadow of a beard across his frowning face. Thin glasses were perched on his pointy nose, and he glared through them down at Derek.

"Can I help you?" he asked roughly, his voice unimpressed and slightly thick with sleep.

"You better not have laid one fucking finger on her," Derek growled at the man, pushing past him so fast that Daniel didn't have time to react.

"Casey?" he called as he began running inside the house.

"Just who the hell do you think you are!" he could hear Daniel storming after him.

"Casey?" Derek called desperately again, running up the stairs on a whim.

"Derek?" he finally heard her soft voice and Derek felt his heart squeeze at the sound. He heard her again and followed her voice down the hall and to the left. He opened the door to find Casey curled up in a bed, her eyes rimmed with redness and her cheeks wet with tears. She was in the fetal position, her whole body visibly shaking. She was clad in only a pair of cotton panties and a bra.

"Casey," Derek breathed, rushing over to her. As soon as Casey saw him, she burst into a fresh batch of tears, and Derek quickly gathered her up into his arms. She was freezing. Probably in shock.

"D-D-Derek," she bawled into his shoulder.

"Casey," Derek rubbed her back, trying to warm her up. "Case, did he hurt you?"

Casey only sobbed harder into his jacket and Derek closed his eyes silent mourning for the shivering girl in his arms. He had to take that as an affirmative.

Trying to push aside his emotions for the time being, Derek leapt into action. He shrugged off his jacket quickly and pulled it over Casey's trembling form. He zipped it up high, covering up her exposed body, just as Daniel MacDonald finally made it into the room.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing!" Daniel's voice boomed, dark blue eyes blazing with anger. He moved to get at Casey but Derek quickly jumped in front of her, pushing the hysterical girl behind him.

"You will not touch her _ever_ again," Derek seethed through his teeth, his fists clenched and ready. Whatever he had to do, he would not let this monster lay one hand on Casey as long as he had a breath in his body.

Daniel actually laughed at that. He peered down at the boy who was much smaller than he was and let out a mocking guffaw. "You know this stupid punk, kitten?" he asked Casey with an amused smirk on his face.

Casey didn't respond, simply grabbing the back of Derek's shirt, clutching him to her from behind. Derek had never seen her look so completely fragile and scared before.

It made his blood boil.

Knowing it was probably not the brightest thing to do at the time, Derek felt himself lose control and charge at the lumberjack-built man. Daniel, who was momentarily caught off guard by the teen's audacity, was somehow knocked to the ground.

"_Run, Casey_!" Derek shouted as he toppled to the ground on top of the huge man. Terrified, Casey screamed at the top of her lungs and jumped over the two, fleeing the room as fast as she could.

"_Call the police_!" Derek managed to yell before feeling Daniel's oversized fist connect with his skull.

It only took that one punch for his whole world to turn black.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: **_Sorry for the delay, I've been doing some end of the summer stuff with my friends... last hurrah parties and whatnot. So I've been kinda busy. To make up for it, I've made this chapter a bit longer than usual. Hope you enjoy and thanks for all the reviews, please keep 'em coming, I enjoy reading them all!_

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The next thing Derek heard was his name being called over and over by an unfamiliar voice. He slowly opened his eyes, coming face-to-face with a blurry-looking stranger. It took a few seconds for everything to register in Derek's mind. He stared at the man blankly as he gradually came into focus. He was wearing an EMT jacket and hat.

"_Mmrrf_?" Derek asked sluggishly, his words not exactly forming correctly. His throat felt dry and his head was pounding so hard that he could barely hear anything else around him.

"Derek, you're currently in an ambulance on your way to a hospital," the man said slowly so the somnolent teen could comprehend what he was saying. "You received a heavy blow to the head."

"Casey?" Derek managed to ask hoarsely, licking his lips to try to moisturise them. "Where's Casey?"

"I'm here, Derek," he heard a gentle, soothing voice say. Suddenly Casey's blotchy, tear-stained face appeared in Derek's view, and a soft hand wrapped around his fingers. She gave him a small smile, letting him know that she was okay.

"Did you tell them what happened?" Derek asked, swallowing several times. His vision was still a little fuzzy and his ears were ringing, and all he wanted to do right then and there was sleep. But first he had to know that Casey was being taken care of.

"Her stepfather hit you," the EMT responded with a nod.

Derek shook his head and then winced, realising that wasn't such a good idea. "No," he groaned, closing his eyes a moment for the sharp pain to subside. "Tell them, Casey," he said, opening his eyes again to find Casey.

Casey's eyes widened a bit and she shook her head vigorously, that frightened look coming over her face again. "No," she mouthed to Derek insistently.

Derek's eyes narrowed into a glare. "Casey, you need to tell them."

"I can't," she whispered, wrapping her arms around Derek's jacket that she wore, hugging herself in comfort. "I can't," she said again brokenly, tears falling again.

"Sweetheart, if that man hurt you, you need to tell us," the EMT looked over at Casey compassionately.

Casey began crying even harder and Derek used all of his strength to sit himself up in the stretcher he was in, despite the EMT's protests. He reached out for Casey, who immediately sank into his arms, and he soothingly ran his fingers through her tangled hair as she sobbed.

"Casey, you've got to tell them," Derek murmured gently into her ear as he stroked her hair and rubbed her back. "I promise I won't let him ever hurt you again. I promise, Case."

Casey's sobs slowly turned into hiccups and she turned her head to look over at the awaiting EMT.

"He raped me," Casey said softly, and Derek let her cling to him for support. He wrapped an arm around her tightly, squeezing her shoulder gently to let her know that she was doing the right thing.

"My stepfather raped me."

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By the time they arrived at the hospital, Derek was feeling a lot better. Except for the ache inside of him he felt for the pain Casey was in. She didn't let him go as they insisted on still wheeling him into the emergency room.

"Don't leave me," Casey whispered, her whole body still trembling.

"I won't, I promise," Derek replied, entangling their fingers together, strengthening the grip they had on each other. He would protect Casey with all he had.

"What happened to Daniel?" Derek asked the EMT.

"He's been brought into the police station for questioning," the EMT responded.

"What?" Derek demanded, alarmed. "You mean that asshole isn't even under arrest?"

"We have no real evidence against him," the EMT replied gravely. "That is, unless Casey agrees to a rape kit and we get something on him…" Both he and Derek looked over at Casey, who looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"Casey, do it," Derek urged gently, squeezing her hand.

Casey looked very unsure, her eyes filling again.

"The evidence would help put him away," the EMT also pushed.

"Like, in jail?" Casey asked tentatively, her voice very small.

The EMT nodded, and Casey looked over at Derek. He gave her a gentle smile and nod, and finally Casey relented.

"Only if Derek stays with me," she said softly. She was too emotionally broken to do any of this herself. She needed someone. She needed Derek.

"Alright," the EMT nodded, and went to go get a nurse.

Meanwhile, Derek sat up, his headache now nearly gone. He got off the stretcher and hugged the half-dressed girl to him.

"You're doing the right thing," he said to her gently, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"I was so scared, Derek," Casey said, her voice wavering.

"I know," Derek soothed, holding her even tighter to him. He knew he could never let her go after this. He never wanted anyone to touch her again. Ever.

A friendly-looking nurse came over and with a solemn smile, asked if they were the ones who needed the rape kit. Derek answered for Casey, and firmly made it known that wherever she was going, he was coming with her. He also gave the nurse their house number so they could call George and Nora, who should know what was going on.

The nurse got a wheelchair for Casey and Derek helped her into it; Casey wouldn't let go of his hand for a second. And Derek didn't mind one bit. They walked down into a small examining room filled with posters about pregnancy and birth control.

"Here's a hospital gown for you to put on," the nurse said, pressing a folded Johnny onto Casey's lap. Derek took it off and Casey stood up so the nurse could take the wheelchair away.

"A doctor will be in shortly," the nurse said gently and left, shutting the door with a soft click so the two teens were now alone.

"Are you okay?" Derek finally got to ask the traumatised girl. She finally let go of his hand reluctantly and looked down, giving him a sad nod.

"Just scared," Casey responded weakly, biting her lower lip.

Derek nodded sympathetically. That was more than understandable. He hated Daniel MacDonald for everything he had done to Casey. He wanted to kill him. Or at least make him suffer. A lot.

"I'll turn around while you change," Derek said, turning his back to his stepsister before she could even respond. He closed his eyes as he listened to Casey unzip his jacket that she was wearing. He could imagine the nurse on the phone with George and Nora right now, telling them what was going on. He could see George's look of utter shock and Nora's twisted face of feigned surprise. She could say whatever she wanted—but Derek knew that she had to have known.

"Okay," he heard Casey say quietly, and he turned around to find her dressed in the white-and-blue printed gown. She looked so tiny in the large hospital gown that Derek just wanted to take her in his arms again. But he didn't get to because suddenly there was a rapping on the door.

"Come in," Derek said, and the two teens turned towards the opening door. A man in a doctor's coat with the obligatory stethoscope hanging loosely around his neck walked in, a serious look on his face.

"Casey MacDonald?" the man asked Casey, and Derek cringed at the last name. She really shouldn't have to have _his_ name.

"Yes," Casey affirmed weakly.

The doctor shut the door behind him and took out a chart. "Alright, I'm going to need you to hop up on the examining table," he said, then looked over at Derek. "And you are…?"

"Casey's stepbrother," Derek responded immediately. "I'm not leaving."

The doctor raised an eyebrow at Derek's stern tone, but nodded. "Alright. I'm Doctor Flynn," the man extended his hand towards Derek, who shook it firmly. He also turned and shook Casey's hand where she sat on the paper-covered table, swinging her bare legs nervously back and forth.

"Now, let me explain to you what's going to happen," Doctor Flynn said. "First I'm going to ask you a few questions, Casey, and it is imperative that you answer honestly. Then I'm going to do a routine pelvic examine and a swabbing of the cervix to see if there is any leftover semen that could provide evidence."

Derek reached over and took Casey's hand at this, seeing her body still.

"Then we're going to take a blood sample to make sure you didn't contract any disease and to check for pregnancy. In any case, we will be giving you what we call the Morning After Pill just for precaution. We also are going to bag the clothes you came in wearing as evidence. Alright? Any questions?"

Casey looked like she was barely holding up. She suddenly looked so completely exhausted that Derek wanted to tell the doctor to scram so she could get some sleep before she passed out from exhaustion. But she shook her head weakly in response to the doctor and lay back on the table when Doctor Flynn instructed her to.

Derek moved towards the head of the examining table to be with Casey. Casey reached out and grabbed Derek's hand. He let her take it.

"Okay, Miss MacDonald," Dr. Flynn sat down in a stool in front of her and uncapped the pen that had been hidden behind his large, stuck-out ear. "Remember that I need you to answer these questions honestly." He looked over at Casey through his thin glasses and she nodded carefully. "Could you have been pregnant before tonight's incident?"

"No," Casey said, shaking her head vigorously, her eyes wide and serious.

"Were you sexually active?"

"N-no," Casey said, her voice trailing off. "Not for the past couple of years anyway."

Dr. Flynn looked back up at her at this. She was only fifteen. "What do you mean by that?"

Derek felt Casey's hand tighten around his and knew that she was trying to gather some of his strength in order to say what she had to say. He looked over at her and gave her a nod of encouragement, even though he wasn't quite so prepared to hear what she was going to tell them.

"My stepfather, Daniel," Casey started slowly, her voice wavering a bit as she spoke his name. "He's m-molested me before. When my mother, sister, and I used to l-live with him."

Dr. Flynn looked impassive as he jotted this all down. "And when was the first time he forced you to have intercourse with him?"

"When I was about eleven," Casey said quietly, and Derek closed his eyes as a pained look washed over his face. She had been just a little kid.

Derek cursed Daniel MacDonald over and over in his head as Casey had to go into more detail about the molestation and her pre-teen years—filled with abuse, not only sexual but physical and verbal, too. By the end of the questioning, Derek's blood pressure was sky-high and he was seething. He was going to kick that son-of-a-bitch's ass as soon as he got a hold of him. He didn't care how big and tough the jerk thought he was.

He plotted ways to kill the bastard as Casey had her pelvic exam and Dr. Flynn took a culture to see if he could get any sperm. Daniel hadn't used a condom. And according to Casey, he never did. How _easily_ she could have gotten pregnant or contracted some horrid STD over the years…

How goddamn considerate of him.

The doctor left them alone to get the nurse and Casey finally looked over at Derek. He was fuming.

"Derek," Casey said softly, squeezing the hand that she still held of his.

"Casey, I'm going to kill that man," he vowed, his tawny eyes wild. "I swear I'm going to kill him."

Casey only shook her head, a tear escaping from her eye. "Derek, you can't…"

"Watch me," Derek said, pulling his hand away and moving towards the door. The look on his face scared Casey.

"Derek, no, please!" Casey's pleading stopped him in his tracks. He looked over to see just how frightened and fragile the girl looked, and he had to swallow to choke down his emotions.

"Please, just stay with me," she whispered.

Derek nodded, moving over and hugging Casey to him. She hugged him back tightly, burying herself in his chest, wanting to disappear right off of the examining table. That's how the nurse found them moments later.

"One blood test and one pregnancy prevention pill," the nurse smiled as if she was awarding them with some parting gift. Derek snarled at her and the young woman quickly lost her smile.

Derek continued to hold her as she took the pill with a small paper cup of water and the now-deadpanned nurse explained she would have to have another one in twelve hours. She gave her the blood test, taped a small square piece of gauze to her arm for the minor bleeding, and hurried off.

"Why didn't you ever tell anybody?" Derek as quietly as he rocked Casey gently in his arms.

"He made me promise not to," Casey sniffled into his shoulder. "He threatened to kill me, Lizzie, and my mom if I did."

Derek pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He felt so helpless, like there was nothing he could do. The girl he was falling in love with was completely broken and there was no way to fix her. She was hurting and there was no way for him to stop the pain.

And it _killed_ him.

"I swear I'll never let anyone hurt you again," he murmured into her hair, stroking his hand down her spine.

"Thank you," was all Casey whispered then, sinking deeper into his embrace.

And she believed him.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: **_Here's the last chapter of the story! I figured that I'd post it cuz I'm going on vacation for a few days starting tomorrow. I hope you enjoyed this story, and, of course, I've already got another LWD fic in motion ;-) So look for my next story soon and please review this one! Thanks! _

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George, Nora, Lizzie, and Edwin all rushed up to the hospital that Casey was being held at. They left Marti with Emily's parents next door. When they were directed to Casey's examining room, where the hospital staff was letting her stay for now, they barged in to find Casey asleep in Derek's arms. Dried tear-tracks marred her face and she had a hard look on her face in her sleep. Her hands were clutching Derek tightly to her as if she was afraid that he'd leave her. But from the look on Derek's face as he sat there, stroking Casey's back absently as he thought, the family knew that was the farthest thing from Derek's mind.

Derek gave Nora a hard look when they all walked in. He tightened his arms around Casey protectively. "Get. Out," he spat in a low voice so as not to wake Casey up.

"Derek!" George chided, appalled by his son's behaviour.

Nora's eyes blazed. "I am her _mother_!"

"Then where were you all those years?" Derek demanded in a louder voice. He felt Casey stir and immediately lowered his tone, pressing a kiss to Casey's warm forehead without a thought until she stilled. "Where were you?" Derek continued then, his voice demanding, challenging.

Nora's mouth closed at that.

"She was _eleven years old_," Derek gave her a filthy look, shaking his head accusingly. "Where_ were_ you?"

Nora fell apart at this and George quickly gathered her into his arms. "My baby…my baby…" she kept repeating. "It's not true…It can't be true…" she continued as she sobbed.

Derek looked away from her, noticing Edwin and Lizzie for the first time. Lizzie was silently sobbing in Edwin's arms, and Edwin was standing stalk-still as he stared despondently at the sleeping Casey.

Gaining somewhat a sense of satisfaction over making Nora cry, Derek turned back to Casey, pressing his lips to her pale cheek as he began stroking her long chestnut hair.

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Casey was released when the doctors were satisfied that she was okay. Of course, they recommended intense therapy for her to help her work through everything. The culture they had taken from her showed up positive for semen and Daniel MacDonald was forced to give a sample for comparison—it was a perfect match.

A court date was set.

Nora apologised profusely to Casey, who seemed to forgive her…

Derek wasn't so quick to forgive.

When they got home from the hospital, he set up a mattress next to her bed. Casey and the rest of the family didn't question him. A few days later, while Casey was in her bed reading and Derek was lounging on the mattress, flipping through a magazine, Casey finally asked.

"How long are you going to stay here with me?"

Derek looked up from his magazine, surprised at Casey's sudden inquiry. "Why, getting sick of me?" he gave her a lop-sided smirk.

"No," Casey rolled her eyes good-naturedly at him. "I mean… why are you still here? You haven't let me out of your sight in three days."

Derek shrugged. "Do you want me to go?"

"No," Casey said quickly. The truth was that she liked having Derek there with her. She felt a lot safer knowing he was watching over her.

Derek sighed, putting down his magazine. Wordlessly he stood up and scooted over next to Casey on her bed. She waited for him to say something, since it seemed like he wanted to, but after a full moment of silence, Casey spoke.

"Thank you," she said softly, reaching over and taking his hand in hers.

Derek cocked an eyebrow at this gesture, staring down at their now entangled hands. "For what?"

"Everything," Casey said in an "_isn't it obvious_?" tone.

And to her complete surprise, she noticed Derek's cheeks redden. He actually _blushed_!

"It's nothing," he shrugged it off, not meeting her gaze.

"No, it's not nothing," Casey said in a sweet tone that made Derek finally look up into her face. And, looking deep into her blue eyes, he realised two things.

One, he had fallen in love with her. Completely and totally.

And two… she _knew_ that he was in love with her.

All that was left was one last thing, the third thing, the final completion: _Did she love him back_?

"You came after me," she spoke gently, staring into his eyes as she spoke. "You saved me. You cared about me. You protected me." She reached out and brushed her fingers against his chin as she cupped her face. Derek instinctively leaned into her touch, the contact of her soft skin making him shiver.

"Thank you," she breathed again before carefully leaning in. Their noses brushed together for a second before Derek felt her lips against his. All he could do was sit there, his eyes automatically fluttering shut as she kissed him, completely entranced. And then, ever so slowly, his mind began working again and he was kissing her back.

He wrapped his arms around her and deepened the kiss, pouring out everything he had been feeling for the past week or so into the kiss—all the frustration, the fear, the pain.

The love.

And, as Casey slipped her warm, sweet tongue into his mouth in return, causing another shiver to move up his spine, he felt it—the love in return. And he closed his eyes, hoping to take all of the years of pain away from her for just that one moment. That one moment of pure love.

"I'll always be there for you," Derek breathed as their lips slowly parted from each other and their eyes met in unspoken understanding.

"Always."

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**the end!**


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